12Timberdoodle’s Curriculum

Handbook

2016-2017 editionTIM

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Welcome to Twelfth Grade

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This year you and your student will

learn more than you

hoped while

having a blast. Ready? You are going

to love this!

We're Here to Help You

We would love to assist you if questions come up, so please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions, comments, or concerns. Whether you contact us by phone, email, or live online chat, you will get a real person who is eager to serve you and your family. Have an absolutely amazing year!

On Your Mark, Get Set, Go!

Preparing for your student’s first “school day” as a high-schooler is very easy. First, peruse this guide yourself, then let your student review the materials so you can plan his schedule together. After planning, you’ll simply turn the entire set over to your student and take your place as his coach while his independent learning ability takes off!

We're So Glad You're Here!

Congratulations on choosing to homeschool this year! Whether this is your first year or your tenth, we’re confident you’ll find that there is very little that compares to the thrill of learning!

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CONTENTS

Dear Parent

STEM LearningLanguage Arts

Introduction

Schedules & Planning

ArtMath

Thinking Skills

Science

History

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Career Planning 101

Eight Reasons to Go Build Something!

Study Helps, etc.

What About a Foreign Language?

Two Types of Thinking

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Congratulations, and welcome to the high-school years! Whether this is your first year of homeschooling or you’ve come this far through years of teaching, you’ve now reached a real milestone. Not only will your student continue planning for college, apprenticeship, or the specific vocation he has in mind, but you will also be working with

Dear Parenthim to help him become a truly independent learner.

Your New RoleThink of your role this year as less of a teacher (step-by-step directions and oversight) and more of a career counselor/tutor. You are there to help him stay on track and to give direction and assistance when he gets stuck, but the primary responsibility falls to him. There are many ways to get to that point, but these steps worked for our family.

1. Annual Planning MeetingAt the beginning of the school year, Mom sat down with each student to iron out expectations, motivation, subjects, etc. We would discuss what our goals were, what subjects were mandatory, and which ones the student really wanted to add to the plan. The final step was to determine a completion date and calculate how many weeks we had to complete the work. If you plan around a typical school year, then 36 weeks is what

you’ll want to base your weekly checklist on. (We suggest that you also take some time at this meeting to work through the High-School Planner and lay out even longer term goals.)6 TIM

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2. Weekly ChecklistNow that you both know what you want to cover and over what period of time, it is a simple matter to determine how many pages should be done each week. We’ve already done all this work for you on pages 11-15, and you’ll find it easy to add in any additional titles or subjects.

3. ExpectationsBefore you end this meeting, make sure you are both on the same page and understand that everything on the weekly checklist must happen or else ___, as we agreed. In our family, Friday night was family night, and anyone whose list wasn’t done simply couldn’t participate until he finished. While that was perfect for us, it won’t work for every family. Find something that works for both of you and put it in writing if needed. It is worth the effort to keep peace later!

4. CoachingWithin a few weeks, your student should be able to complete his checklist independently and on time. However, if you’ve never had such a hands-off approach to homeschooling, it is reasonable to spend some time coaching his budding independence with reminders and even direct oversight of some subjects.

Just don’t lose sight of the goal! Of course, don’t feel guilty if you have some subjects which you would rather do as a family or that you yourself would like to learn alongside your student. You will both enjoy that! At the same time, though, don’t hesitate to turn over the teacher’s books and answer keys, equipping your student to be truly self-teaching. In that light, you’ll find the rest of this guide is written to your student to give him all the information he needs to get started.

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All the Details IncludedThis Timberdoodle Curriculum Kit is available in three different standard levels: Basic, Complete, or Elite. This allows you to choose the assortment best suited to your interest level, your family's schedule, and your family's budget. In this guide, you’ll find an overview and any tips for each of the items included in the Elite Curriculum Kit. If you are working with a Basic or Complete Kit, or if your family customized your kit, you did not receive every item, so you’ll only need to familiarize yourself with the ones which were included in your kit.

Simple Is BetterWe really believe that, so your guide is as simple as we could make it. First up are the annual planner and sample weekly checklists, the absolute backbones of Timberdoodle's Curriculum Kits. More on those in a moment. Next up are short bios of each item in your

THREE QUICK TIPS TO GET YOU STARTED

Meet Your Handbook

kit, designed to explain why each is included this year. We've also thrown in our tips or tricks to make this year more awesome for you. Finally, we'll conclude with favorite articles and tidbits amassed in our 30 years of homeschool experience.

Why Week by Week WorksWe know you. OK, maybe not you personally, but we have yet to meet a homeschooler who didn't have other irons in the fire. From running an entrepreneurial start-up to swimming lessons or volunteer opportunities, your weeks are not dull. A daily schedule could overwhelm you, but having a weekly checklist is the perfect blend of enough structure to finish in a timely fashion and enough freedom that your adventures won't make for stressful catch-up days. Relax; this year is so doable!

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If You Want to Finish It This YearA standard school year is 36 weeks long, so that's what our samples here will show. But you do not have to use that schedule! Perhaps you'd like to expedite this year so all school is done before sports season? Or perhaps you prefer to school year-round and keep your brain sharp and workload light? Decide on a schedule that works for you.

Use the Customizer

On the next pages you'll find sample weekly checklists for Basic, Complete, and Elite kits. Before you photocopy 36 of them, take a moment to check out the custom schedule builder that came free with your kit. At www.TimberdoodleSchedules.com you'll not only easily adjust the weeks, but also tweak the checklist to include exactly what you want listed.

Designed for Maximum FlexibilityNo two families are identical, so don't expect your pace or daily school time to be identical. We asked the families who used our high

school kits how long their student spent on "school." Nearly 65% estimated that they spent 3-5 hours a day specifically on these materials. That leaves about 35% spending more or less time than that, so don't stress if your schedule doesn't exactly match up. And, of course, the time you spend will be greatly impacted by how in-depth you take your studies, your learning approach, how distractable you allow yourself to be, and much more. Make sure you allow yourself some time to find your own rhythm!

Meeting State Requirements

Check https://www.hslda.org/laws to see your specific requirements. For many states it is sufficient to simply hang on to your completed and dated weekly checklists along with a sampling of your best work this year and your completed One Year Planner. However, a more formal portfolio may be recommended for your state, your future college, etc. Take some time to determine how best to log all your work early in the year, so you can get your process refined as early as possible.

How to Use Timberdoodle's Planners

Planning Your Year

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WEEKLY CHECKLIST (COMPLETE)La

ngua

ge

Art

s Easy Grammar Ultimate 5 lessons

Wordsmith Craftsman 1 week's work

Mat

h

Teaching Textbooks Pre-Calculus 3 lessons/tests

Thin

king

Ski

lls

The Rhetoric Companion 1 lesson

Big Book of Brain Games 28 brain teasers

IQ Steps 3-4 challenges

His

tory

Exploring World History 5 lessons

Scie

nce

Friendly Chemistry 1 lesson

Art 20 Ways to Draw a Bike 1-2 themes

Etc. High School One Year Planner daily

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Writing well and understanding language roots may seem unimportant to you, but these may very well be the most critical portions of your study this year. From writing an essay for your college application to publishing your resume, writing your first patient report as a doctor or submitting your final paper, your writing skills will impact your life even in a “non-writing” occupation. Of course, the impact will be much greater if you’re going to make a living as a journalist, script writer, or author!

Lang

uage

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COMPLETEBASIC ELITE

Easy Grammar Ultimate 12 is designed specifically to introduce and teach essential grammar concepts to older students, regardless of their previous grammar background. In just ten to fifteen minutes a day, you will be functioning at a twelfth-grade level and be competent to undertake your state or college prep tests.

SchedulingFive lessons a week will complete the entire book in a year. (While a student workbook is available, we have opted to include only a teacher’s manual. This is not just to save money; what is even more important is that having the answers available lets you check your own work and learn from any mistakes.)

EASY GRAMMAR ULTIMATE

WORDSMITH CRAFTSMAN

COMPLETEBASIC ELITE

This self-directed program allows you to take charge of your assignments and schedules. Strong in preparing you for college, Wordsmith will

equip you for a lifetime of excellence in communication skills.

SchedulingYou’ll find several different schedule options included, allowing you to complete the book this year or spread it out as a multi-year curriculum. Pick the schedule that works best for you.

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